Play of the week: SEA vs CHV and MTL vs SKC

Week 22’s Play of the week challenges you to make a call on two handball decisions from MLS action.

The Professional Referee Organization’s Training & Development Manager, Paul Rejer, explained: “This week I would like to explore the difficulties referees face when considering handball offenses.

“It is one of the simplest of all the Laws of the Game, yet the difficulty for referees in a match situation is trying to determine whether a handball act is or isn’t deliberate and the complexity involved in making this judgement.

“The referee has to consider;

“1. The proximity of the offending player when the ball is struck

“2. The movement of the hand or arm towards the ball or away from the ball to prevent a handball offence occurring

“3. Consideration of the hand or arm in the unnatural position

“4. Whether the player uses his hands or arms to make himself bigger

“Determining what is a deliberate act often causes us the most problems. It leads to confusion to spectators and players, and provides referees with one of their hardest challenges.”